December 1–4, 2016
Public: Installations by 20 international artists will transform Collins Park
2016 marks the fourth year that Nicholas Baume, Director and Chief Curator of Public Art Fund, New York, will curate the Public sector at Art Basel in Miami Beach. The theme “Ground Control” will frame this year’s selection, which includes over 20 site-specific works by established and emerging artists spanning ten countries. Produced in collaboration with The Bass for the past six years, the sector will transform Miami Beach’s Collins Park into an outdoor exhibition space with works by Magdalena Abakanowicz, David Adamo, Jean-Marie Appriou, Eric Baudart, Huma Bhabha, Yoan Capote, Claudia Comte, Matías Duville, Camille Henrot, Glenn Kaino, Alicja Kwade, Sol LeWitt, Wagner Malta Tavares, Tony Matelli, William J. O’Brien, Anthony Pearson, Norbert Prangenberg, Ugo Rondinone, Tony Tasset and Erwin Wurm.
The Public sector of Art Basel in Miami Beach will open on Wednesday, November 30 at 8pm with a special evening performance program featuring Davide Balula, Lady Bunny, Rob Pruitt and Naama Tsabar. The Public Opening Night is free of charge and open to the public.
Nicholas Baume’s curatorial focus for the 2016 exhibition will be “Ground Control,” inspired by David Bowie, who passed away earlier this year. Under this theme, the Public sector will examine ways in which artists invent and imagine new kinds of space: physical, social and psychic.
Highlights of the sector include: Jean-Marie Appriou’s (b. 1986) installation Mirage (2016) presented by Clearing, which will feature four aluminum cast sculptures of camels standing on their own reflections, as if in a mirage. Each camel will be almost life-size, measuring nearly 3 meters—significantly larger than previous work by the artist. Tony Tasset’s (b. 1960) monumental Arrow Sculpture (2016), shown by Kavi Gupta, will depict a pair of larger-than-life arrows, one pointing up and the other pointing down. The largest piece from Tasset’s ongoing series, the arrows will be painted in bright, contrasting colors meant to reference the art market and changing tastes. The juxtaposition of the natural and industrial will be featured in Arena Parking (2016) by Matías Duville (b. 1974). Presented by Revolver Galería, the work includes a topographical installation created from pressed asphalt with a large-scale forged steel ring in its center.
Several works will challenge how visitors experience their surroundings through repurposed everyday objects, including Eric Baudart’s (b. 1972) Atmosphère (2016) presented by Edouard Malingue Gallery, which will feature a clear tank filled with yellow peanut oil in which a fan slowly rotates.
Recently rebranded as The Bass, Miami Beach’s contemporary art museum will present a towering work by Ugo Rondinone (b. 1964). Consisting of five brightly painted boulders stacked in the form of a contemporary cairn, Miami Mountain (2016) finds its geological inspiration from “hoodoos,” rock formations of North American badlands that have endured time and nature.
The exhibition in Collins Park will last through Sunday, December 4, 2016, although a selection of artworks will remain installed until March 15, 2017 as part of “The Bass Projects.”
Public is produced in collaboration with The Bass and supported by MGM Resorts Art & Culture. For the full gallery and artist list, please see our website.
Art Basel, whose Lead Partner is UBS, is taking place from Thursday, December 1 to Sunday, December 4, 2016 with the preview taking place on Wednesday, November 30, 2016. This year, 269 leading international galleries from 29 countries will present works ranging from the early 20th century to the most contemporary artists of today.
